Who Are You?
by manthisis
Summary: The moon is getting closer to Termina, and Cremia can't stand its presence. Also, who is this young boy in green? And why does he seem so similar to someone she had known before?
1. Day One

**NOTE: If you read, please give as much critique as possible. It's my first fanfic ever. Hope you enjoy it. The first 5 chapters are about Link's three days in Majora's Mask, after which is the main part of the story.**

Dawn made its appearance over the thick ring of trees surrounding a peaceful ranch in Termina. Within this ranch, two girls by the names of Romani and Cremia were sound asleep in their beds until the rooster made its daily crow, rousing the elder sister.

Cremia groggily opened her eyes to see the wooden ceiling of her ranch house. Though one might dislike arising at six o'clock every morning to do nothing but work, it was all Cremia ever knew to do. The ranch girl got up and changed into her usual work attire, consisting of a loose white top, yellow scarf, and a long pink skirt. She made to her little sister's bed to wake her up for breakfast. "I wonder what she looks like this morning," she thought, smiling slightly and giggling to herself at how Romani was extremely fidgety when she was sleeping.

Predictably, as soon as she walked over to Romani's bed, the little girl's hair was absolutely everywhere on her pillow and her sheets were almost off of the bed.

"Hey, sleepyhead, wake up!"

Romani's eyes shot open in an instant and she immediately rose out of bed and greeted Cremia.

"My, my, Romani, what's gotten you so awake this morning?" she said, flabbergasted at how quickly her sister had gotten up.

"What do you mean, sis? I've told you this before; Romani has to get ready for tonight! They are coming! Romani has to be completely prepared so she can save our cows!"

Cremia rolled her eyes. Romani has always insisted that aliens come a couple days before the Carnival of Time and abduct the cows. A couple of cows have actually disappeared around this time in previous years, yes, but the ranch wasn't exactly the most secure place, as there is no gate exactly separating Romani Ranch from Milk Road. "I should probably put one there to stop Romani thinking all of this silliness," Cremia resolved with a frown.

"Oh all right, but clean yourself up, your hair is an absolute mess!" Cremia teased.

"Really? Well, why don't you look in the mirror yourself, sis?" Romani replied with a bit of a devilish smile.

"Pardon me?" Cremia walked over to the mirror next to her bed and raised her eyebrows. Her hair, identical to her sisters, was unnaturally everywhere. She turned around to see her sister giggling at her. She immediately combed her hair down and look at her sister with a sheepish smile.

"Get downstairs, I'm gonna make breakfast." Cremia ordered playfully.

"Yes, sis."

After Cremia had calmed the birds nest of Romani's hair (without a struggle, of course) they walked down the steps together into the living room. Romani walked outside, as she does every morning, and went over to let the cows out for the morning so they can graze in the open field. Cremia, however, prepared breakfast, this morning it being an over easy egg on a piece of toast for each of them. Cremia walked outside to call her sister back in, however, but was stopped short by the spectacle before her.

The sun was barely over the mountain near their ranch and, since it was still roughly 6:30 AM, the sky was still crimson red from the sunrise. There was rain falling from a dark layer of clouds over and around the ranch, but near the horizon all around the sky was still open. This whole effect left a beautiful mixture of the rain glittering in the reddish-pink color from the sunset.

"Wow, Romani, look at the sky!"

"That's great, sis." Romani replied, but Cremia knew she wasn't very interested. Romani was always quite tomboyish, constantly playing with her bow and riding horses, and did not find the splendor of nature very intriguing.

"Oh, lighten up. It looks magnificent and you know it." she said, peering at Romani. "Anyway, get inside, it's time to eat."

After eating breakfast, Cremia stayed inside for half an hour before walking outside. The sky was blue but, surprisingly, the rain had stopped and the clouds had partially cleared out. She got a bucket from the barn and made to go milk the cows that were now gently grazing throughout the pasture.

She was busy tending to the cow near the main entrance to the ranch, however, when she heard the grass crunch behind her. "Romani?" she mumbled, turning around. Instead of Romani, however, there was a young boy in front of her.

"Oh my!" she exclaimed, pulling a surprised face and inspecting him.

He was wearing a green hood and overall, with a brown belt and a sword and shield strapped to his back. His hair concealed by his hood was blond and slightly messy. Like she and Romani, he had very deep blue eyes that stared up at her curiously. The young boy looked perhaps a couple years older than Romani.

"Did you come from town?" Cremia asked the boy. He nodded. She was not at all surprised to see a visitor at the ranch since people came constantly to either purchase milk or other farm goods. However, since an enormous boulder blocked Romani Ranch from Milk Road, not a single soul has stepped into Romani Ranch other than the two sisters. But… this boy was here now…

"Then that means… Milk Road is open to traffic! Good! I can deliver milk to town now!" She remarked to herself.

"Welcome to Romani Ranch, Chateau Romani's village. Enjoy yourself."

The small boy nodded at her and proceeded to walk up the road towards the farmhouse, where Romani was practicing with her bow. Cremia returned to her work, quite overjoyed that she could return to delivering milk to the bar.

Romani came running over to her roughly ten minutes later dragging the boy in green by her hand.

"Sis! Romani has met a new friend! This is Grasshopper!"

"Oh hello… Grasshopper." Cremia said awkwardly, frowning at the unusual name. For some reason she did not feel that this was his real name. Cremia straightened her odd expression into a smile as not to offend the boy if it was actually his name. "What brings you to these parts?"

Grasshopper pointed towards a reddish-brown colored horse that Cremia had completely forgotten about. The mare, which was in fact quite beautiful, had shown up to the ranch just yesterday and, not knowing what to do with it, Cremia and Romani kept it in a pin near the ranch house.

"Is this your horse, boy?" she asked, to which Grasshopper nodded. "Well, it's nice to see that she has an owner. It would be a tragedy to see the beautiful mare abandoned."

There was a small period of silence where Grasshopper and Romani stared at her. Cremia ruffled her hair in the back before Romani quickly said, "Cool! Hey, Grasshopper, come over here, I want to tell you something. See you, sis!" after which they ran off once more towards the house. The elder sister placed her hands on her hips and laughed to herself at how Romani awkwardly ran in swift, short steps.

The day went on with Cremia both milking cows and collecting eggs from the coop (Grog, the caretaker of the chickens, seemed a bit more upset than usual today). At roughly 6:30 PM, Cremia walked back up towards the ranch. She was surprised to see, however, that the young boy who had visited the ranch earlier still lingered with Romani. Cremia watched very impressed as he rode on his horse with a bow, shooting balloons down with extreme accuracy at high speeds.

"Hey, Romani, what's he doing?"

"Grasshopper is helping me defend the ranch against Them tonight. Can he stay? Can he? Please?" she pleaded.

"Romani, how many times do I have to tell you that these so called, 'aliens,' don't exist?" Cremia asserted, putting her right hand in her face.

"Yes they do! Romani has seen them steal the cows! Why don't you believe me?" the little girl cried exasperatedly, waving her arms at her sides.

Cremia did not feel like arguing right now, so she gave in. "Oh, all right, he can stay for tonight, but no longer than that." Grasshopper noticed that the two were looking at him, and he gracefully dismounted his horse. He walked over to them, and Cremia realized she hadn't said something.

"I'm sorry, but I never properly introduced myself. I'm Cremia, Romani's older sister. We live here in Romani Ranch. Your name is Grasshopper?"

"My real name is Link, but Romani calls me Grasshopper," the boy spoke, for the very first time she had heard him do so. His voice was on the higher side, so he had most assuredly not hit puberty yet.

"Well, _Link_," Cremia shot a nasty look at her sister, who seemed to not have noticed. "It's nice to meet you. I hear from Romani you are staying for tonight?" Link nodded and stared at the ground. He didn't seem to want to be a burden.

"Don't worry, it's no trouble at all!" she assured, giving him a warm smile. "I have a few spare blankets for you in the closet if you wish, sweetie." Cremia said, stifling a laugh as his face went red. He must not be used to being talked to like a child.

The three of them walked inside into the warmer atmosphere, the fire crackling to the side. Romani's stomach rumbled as they sat down. Pink faced, she looked up at the ceiling as Link smiled next to her. Cremia set out three baked potatoes with homemade cheese, salt, and butter.

"I'm sorry for imposing on you like this," Link said quietly, slowly eating his meal.

"It's our pleasure. Besides, when Romani wants something, it's hard to say no!" Cremia chided, winking at Link and gaving Romani a sarcastic look.

It was quiet for a few minutes, nothing being heard besides the cracks of the fire and the clinking of silverware against the plates.

"So, Grasshopper, you ready?" Romani suddenly said while they were finishing off their meals. "They cannot reach the barn or they'll abduct the cows. Romani will watch the barn, you need to circle the farm taking out as many as possible, got it?!" She took a very stern look, which showed her passion for the theory.

"Absolutely," he simply replied. Romani cheerfully gave him a high-five.

After dinner, Cremia set up a bed of blankets near the fireplace. Link took off his sword and shield, but crawled into the covers still wearing his tunic.

"Are you sure you want to wear that to bed? Looks kind of uncomfortable…" the ranch owner asked skeptically. Link gave her a quick look which she understood to mean yes.

In the bedroom, Cremia dressed back into her nightgown.

"Cremia?"

She turned around and noticed Romani standing in the door, still in her day's attire.

"Shouldn't you be getting to bed, Romani? It's nearly ten."

"Uhm… Can Romani stay down with Grasshopper for a little bit to talk to him?"

"Only if you're down there for just a little bit. You need some sleep, we have work to do tomorrow."

"Yes, sister."

"Okay," Cremia said, walking over to her sister and ruffling her hair. Romani gave an annoyed look before saying, "Night, sis."

"Goodnight, Romani."


	2. Day Two (Part One)

**Note: Sorry if this is slightly boring in any way. I just wanted to give Cremia's viewpoint during the three days in which Link saves Termina and then go onto the main story. I'm splitting Day Two into two parts since a lot seems to happen on that day. Hope you enjoy it :)**

"Nyuagh…"

The bedroom was much darker than usual. Cremia opened her eyes to nearly complete blackness. She squinted her eyes and, soon after, rose from the bed. Lighting a candle, she made sure to comb her own hair before waking up Romani.

"Romani? Time to get up."

Silence, however, followed her command. She walked over to Romani's bedside to see that she had not only remained in her work clothes, but that they were littered with hay. She was also fast asleep.

"Hey! Time to get up! Chop chop!" Cremia said loudly to her sister, pulling the covers off of the bed. Romani grunted and slowly opened her eyes. As she stood up and stretched her arms, Cremia noticed the dark circles under her sister's eyes, as well as the fact that they were slightly pink. She clearly hadn't gotten much sleep last night, most likely due to her defending the ranch from "Them."

"M-morning sis…hmm." Romani groaned through a yawn.

"So um… What time did you go to bed, hmm?" Cremia interrogated, squinting her eyes with a furrowed brow.

Romani wasn't paying attention though. She walked over to her mirror, tripping over the corner of her bed in the process, and clumsily got ready for the tiring day ahead. Cremia giggled and decided not to punish her for this time. Doing so would probably create a row, since Romani would insist she is being innocently punished.

"Go take a bath, you're filthy."

"Nnkayyyy." Romani mumbled, seemingly disregarding what would normally be an offending remark.

While Romani cleaned herself up, Cremia fulfilled the morning's usual schedule, making breakfast and igniting the fireplace. She walked outside to see the explanation to the darkness when they woke up. Outside, it was gloomy with buckets of rain pouring down. What was nice about the rain, however, was that it covered up the terror of Termina's moon. Every day it seemed to fall closer towards the earth. Not only was it a threat, but it had a very disturbing face on the side of it.

Closing the door quickly, Cremia turned around to see her sister skipping down the steps jovially, two at a time.

"Well, well, well, what's perked you up this morning?"

"Romani and Grasshopper did it. We protected the cows."

"Yes, yes you did…" Cremia stopped what she was doing. "Wait… where is Link anyway?"

"His name is Grasshopper, and Romani doesn't really know. She just saw him riding out of the ranch on Epona last night."

"Epona?"

"That's the name of Grasshopper's horse."

"Got it." Cremia stared at her sister, who was smiling and bobbing up and down on her toes. She didn't know really why, but Cremia felt saddened at the departure of Link. Having some company around the ranch every once in a while did not hurt and, ever since the blockage in Milk Road, company has been scarce. She loved her sister, of course, but did enjoy the presence of others as well. Going into Clock Town wasn't exactly the most enjoyable thing to do for her either... The festivities of the Carnival constantly poked at her heart, reminding her of the upcoming wedding of Anju and Kafei that she didn't want to happen...

Shaking herself out of this thought, she said, "Well, let's eat quickly and get to work."

Thirty minutes later, Cremia was almost finished instructing Romani on how to groom a cow.

"Be sure to be gentle. We need to make sure our cows are happy so they can produce lots of good milk, okay?"

"Okay." Romani bent down and started to pat the cow on the side, which resulted in a satisfied moo.

"Don't forget that later this evening I'm making our first delivery in a while to Mr. Barten." Cremia informed Romani.

At that moment, the door opened behind them. Turning around, Cremia was surprised to see Link quickly stepping into the barn, his hood and hair damp from the rain outside.

"Oh my… hello." Cremia blinked.

"Romani's going to take our milk to Clock Town, too." The little girl said, grinning at Link.

"You're looking after the place!" Cremia reminded her. "The cows would be all alone otherwise." Who knows what the cows would do if they had no company?

"YES, sister…" Romani sighed. Cremia knew that Romani knew better than to argue.

Turning to Link, she said, "I'm going by wagon into town. Would you like a ride? I'll be leaving around six o'clock this evening, so you can join me if you'd like." Link nodded and made to leave.

"Romani wants to go too!" her little sister whined with a sad face. Apparently she did want to argue this time.

"You can't!" Cremia ordered sternly. The door snapped shut, marking Link's departure.

Throughout the rest of the day, Romani would barely make eye contact with Cremia and grumbled when Cremia asked her something.

At around five o'clock, while they were cutting grass near the ranch house, Cremia said, "All right, grumpyhead, if you really want to, you can come next time I make a trip to Clock Town."

Romani's face brightened up instantly. "You promise?"

"I promise." Cremia smiled reassuringly. Romani's step was more of a skip from then on out.

Cremia, an hour later, readied the carriage, tying their mule to the front to pull them in. Romani walked out of the barn.

"So is Grasshopper coming with you tonight?"

"I'm assuming so."

Romani smiled at this, and climbed atop the carriage to stay at lookout for her friend in green.

Fifteen minutes later, Romani abruptly jumped off the carriage and started running towards the entrance to Romani Ranch. Cremia turned around to see Link smiling at Romani, who, as they walked back together, was talking to him animatedly with her hands.

"All right Romani, say goodbye to Link and head inside. Be sure to check on the cows every now and then."

"Yes, sister. See ya later, Grasshopper!" Romani skipped over to the house, waved at Link, and went inside. Cremia turned around to double check she had the two bottles of Chateau Romani and one bottle of normal milk that she was delivering, and turned back to Link. Mr. Barten wouldn't be happy if he didn't have the milk to provide for all the travelers during the Carnival of Time.

She looked up at the sky. The rain had stopped only a few minutes before, leaving the cloudy sky with a dark red tint as the sunset finished its course.

Turning back to Link, "Good evening," she greeted. "I'm going to town now to deliver milk. Would you like a ride?"

"If you would be so kind, yes. And thank you." Link responded, staring at her for a moment before climbing into the back of the carriage."

"That's great… Tonight I'm kind of lonely. I welcome company."

Cremia wouldn't normally be caught saying something like this to a child of his age, but Link seemed to have proven himself beyond his age group's maturity. As Cremia looked at him, he seemed to not be energetic, crazy, and careless like her own sister, but more calm and controlled.

"Well… let's be off then." With that, Cremia spurred the mule on, and they started to gradually move towards the exit of Romani Ranch.


	3. Day Two (Part Two)

**So I lied, day two is actually split into three parts, because I added in a whole new part after this that I hadn't planned previously. Sorry (or not, if you wanted more details).**

Dusk cloaked everything in sight as the two of them dragged to Milk Road. Link, as she has noticed countless times, was extremely quiet, seemingly saying nothing unless he had to.

As they pulled out of the ranch, Cremia realized that she has not had many people in the past to speak with. Though Romani was kind hearted, she was not particularly wise on deeper, sentimental matters. She lived her life carefree. Something Cremia wished she could do.

This boy has proven to her his maturity, so…

"I guess it's been a while now since our father died." she initiated conversation. "I'm trying to take care of the ranch, but things have been getting unstable lately… The cows always seem bothered and frazzled, and I'm finding broken bottles everywhere… Who's doing it, I don't know." Cremia pursed her lips.

Link tilted his head at this, but did not say anything.

My sister Romani," she continued, "has been worried, too. She's practicing using a bow… She says it's to stop the 'ghosts.'" She paused and furrowed her eyebrows before looking up at the moon. Even from this morning, the moon seemed closer than before. Rather than a usual, mysterious figure of the sky, the moon was now an ever-present terror, inflicting uncertainty and fear into the hearts of those who see it.

"Say, what are the townsfolk saying about that moon? It's bigger than before, isn't it?" Cremia, who had not adverted her gaze from the road ahead, looked back at him to find a grim look on his face. Her stomach did a slight flip. Though he was just a boy, Cremia felt like he knew more than she did about this matter.

Looking back at the road, she randomly said, "In town… I have a friend. Her name's Anju…" Pausing for a moment, she continued, "Anju… The day after tomorrow is her wedding."

"_I shouldn't be talking about this… It only brings pain_," she thought, averting her eyes from the road and looking down. Thinking about Kafei hurt too much.

Though he never knew it, from their adolescence Cremia always adored Kafei. He had a good heart and never ceased to comfort her in any situation. Her life couldn't have been better until her best friend Anju, unknowing of Cremia's desire for Kafei, had confessed her love for him, to which he happily accepted. She had mostly conquered the pain that had ensued the event, but her heart seemed to be on fire on the few days that she thought about it.

As the carriage slowly rolled out of the ranch and onto Milk Road, Cremia's attention was captured once again by the moon.

Letting out a sigh of nervousness, she asked, though rhetorical, "I wonder if it will fall… that thing?"

When they reached Milk Road, Cremia looked forward to a sight that completely took her mind off the ordeals of Kafei or the terror in the sky.

"What? The road…"

For right in front of her was a high, steel gate that blocked the direct path from Romani Ranch to Clock Town. Though Cremia was not certain, she had a suspicion as to who was behind this…

"Boy, get your bow ready…" she muttered, looking grim.

As they detoured through the opposite split in the road, there were more gates blocking the shorter path, forcing only one option… Around the Gorman Track.

"First Milk Road is blocked by a boulder and now… We have to talke this detour through ugly country." Her stomach leapt. Her first milk delivery in quite some time also consisted of Chateau Romani, a substance that was extremely valuable. The Gorman Brothers were their rivals in the dairy business. They, however, were not very friendly folk. They constantly slandered the business and claimed Romani Ranch's milk was "watered down." Cremia's teeth gritted at this. The nerve they had…

But her mind shifted towards her milk again. The brothers were very shady men, and Cremia felt like this blockage of the road was not a concidence.

Spurring the mule on a few steps, she turned to Link.

"Are you ready, boy? I'm going to try to get us through here as fast as I can! If any pursuers come from behind, chase them off with your arrows." The young woman cringed at the thought of having to resort to violence, but in this situation, you must fight fire with fire. "They may be after my cargo of milk bottles. Do you understand?"

Link nodded and immediately pulled out his bow. Cremia could only pray he was as experienced with it as he had shown on his first day at the ranch.

"Thanks! I'm relying on you. If we can get through here, I'll have a big thanks for you!" There wasn't a single lie in her promise. Without his aid, she felt she would have no chance of getting through this ordeal.

As the mule pulled forward, Cremia pushed it twice as hard, speeding up the carriage.

Suddenly, there was a shift in the back of the carriage, followed by shouts. Cremia twisted her neck so quickly that it pained her, but she immediately forgot about it at the sight of two bandits with pitchforks charging straight at the pair of them. Fear swelled inside of her as she urged the mule to run as quick as his hooves could possibly carry them.

"Cremia, focus on the road! Forget about back here and just think about getting us out of here!" Link yelled from behind her. Trying to listen to him, she put all of her will into riding at top speed, yet she could not help looking back at the young boy defending the carriage. Cremia noticed what she had seen before at the ranch yesterday; Link was extremely competent with a bow and arrow. In mere seconds, he had shot the hands of both of the bandits, causing their pitchforks to fall to the dirt and disappear into the darkness. Yells of pain were drowned out by the sound of hooves and wooden wheels on the hard ground.

"Come on!" she shouted as she whipped the mule on the back. The pursuers, despite their loss of weaponry, were still attempting to break the bottles of milk in the back. When it seemed one of the bandits had finally grabbed ahold of one of the bottles of Chateau Romani, Link guided an arrow towards the leg of the culprit's horse. The pair went crashing to the ground before their eyes as the Gorman track finally ended.

Sweat littered the forehead of the young woman as they reared towards the eastern entrance to Clock Town. As soon as the bumpy ride ended at the door, Cremia put her face in her hands and laughed out loud in relief. They were safe. The milk was safe. As she stepped down from the carriage, she heard a voice from behind her.

"Are you alright?" Link asked, his face concerned.

"I'm quite fine. You as well?" Cremia panted, still short of breath. Link smiled reassuringly.

She took a minute to catch her breath before saying, "I'm sorry for asking even more of you, but could you help me carry this milk to the bar? It's a bit heavy." Cremia stared into his eyes. He returned the stare, but eventually agreed after a moment.

At the door, both hands carrying bottles of milk, Cremia turned to Link, "Alright, I'll take it into the bar from here in a couple of trips. You need a mask to enter the bar, and-"

She was stopped short as Link, after setting down some of the bottles, pulled out Romani's Mask.

"Wha... how did you... uhm, nevermind." Cremia sputtered.

In the bar, Mr. Barten certainly seemed overjoyed to see the first delivery of milk in some time.

"Wonderful, I've been short on Chateau Romani. High demand, yes indeed..." After laughing heartily, He shook Cremia's hand vigorously before seeing them off, waving.

Link accompanied Cremia back to her carriage. They both stopped in front of it, and she turned to Link with a grin on her face.

"Mr. Barten was happy to get his first delivery in quite a while!" she exclaimed.

However, her mind averted to what she had said earlier.

"_If we can get through here, I'll have a big thanks for you!_"

Though, now that she thought about it, he already had Romani's Mask… What else was there to give him…

Maybe…

"Thank you… You were pretty cool…" She shifted uncomfortably, and Link looked curiously into her eyes. "This isn't very big, but accept my thanks!"

And with that, she pulled him into a very tight embrace. His clothes were very cold as Cremia smiled down at him, his face full of a pleasant shock. "_He must not receive affection like this very often_," she thought, giggling.

As she released him, their gaze did not meet. Cremia looked at Link, but he was looking at the ground with his ears very red. Chuckling once more, she apologized, "I'm sorry about giving you only this." Link looked back up at her again. "You already have, Romani's Mask, don't you? It's proof of Milk Bar membership, but you already found that out. Chateau Romani is a little expensive, but please try it at the bar." Giving him a wink, she climbed back into the carriage.

"Thanks again, Link. I hope to see you soon. Take care!" she said loudly from the front of the carriage, her worries far from the moon.


	4. Day Two (Part Three)

Cremia turned her back on him, adjusted her seating to get comfortable before placing her hands on the reigns. However, just as she was about to begin the trip home, she heard him shout, "Wait!"

Frowning, she turned around and jumped to see Link right at her side on the ground.

"Yes, Link?" She had far forgotten that this boy had a child's mind, and had earlier decided not to call him childish names like she did to Romani.

"Do.. uh… do you need accompaniment home?" At the puzzled look on Cremia's face, he quickly went on, "I mean, who knows? Those burglars could chase you again! You do have to travel through their track."

Link looked at her intently, but Cremia insisted, "I couldn't possible ask you to do more for me. Also, how would you get back to Clock Town?"

Silence followed this remark. Link looked around nervously for a split second before mumbling, "Erm, don't worry about that. I can get back here fine. But you seriously don't want to go back by yourself, do you?"

Cremia pondered his argument. Though it seemed unlikely that the Gorman Brothers would attack again after their failure, she felt skeptical about going back through the darker passage by herself.

"Now that I think about it… You're right. It's not safe going back alone. Please, do come along."

The young woman did not know why, but his presence settled her nerves. She felt like she had her own guard, safe from all dangers, while he was around.

Link shuffled into the back of the carriage and sat back down, legs crossed and his back to her. Soon after, Cremia drove the carriage steadily towards the south-western exit of Termina Field.

As they traveled, nobody spoke, leaving only the noises of the crickets and the rolling of the wheels to disturb the silence. Cremia felt uneasy until she thought of something that had been bugging her previously.

"Hey, just a question. Where did you get Romani's Mask? That mask is only given to those who are trusted to attend at the Milk Bar." Giggling slightly, she continued, "Somebody, somewhere must think of you as an adult."

She turned around to Link who, however, had not turned to look at her. He muttered something inaudible.

"Come again?" she said, furrowing her brow.

"I… um… somebody that I really like gave it to me," the boy murmured, staring fixedly at the floor of the carriage.

"_Perhaps I shouldn't intrude on his personal life…_" Cremia resolved after hearing this. He clearly did not want to talk about it. She quickly shook her head. She had not been conscientiously directing the mule in the right direction but, miraculously, they had found the entrance to Milk Road.

The rest of the trip was held in silence until they reached the ranch house itself. The pair of them dismounted the carriage, and Cremia untied the mule to place him back in the barn.

However, as she was leading the mule into his pin, Cremia thought she heard a voice outside. She listened intently, but silence followed in response.

She shuttered again as she touched the doorknob of the barn, which was extremely cold, making her hair stand on end. Peeking out of the side, she noticed Link still standing quite still near the carriage.

Emerging fully, she called, "Hey, Link, do you want to stay in the house again for the night? You've done amazingly and I can't thank you enough. It's the least I can do, since you're here."

He turned around and had a look of pondering on his face before saying, "Well, if it's not a burden, that would be great."

Cremia smiled. "Lovely." She led him into the house, where Romani was sitting intently on the table.

"Grasshopper!" she exclaimed, running over to him. Then a look of puzzlement ran across her face. "Wait… Grasshopper? Romani thought you were dropped off at town?" She looked at Cremia for answers.

"Well, Romani, we came into a little obstacle along the way, so Link accompanied me back. He'll be staying for one more night," she said with a smile. Romani squealed at this. Luckily, she didn't seem to notice the obstacle part of the sentence. Explaining this to the girl would only scare her.

"Cool! Hey, wanna go outside again and practice shooting the balloons?"

"Excuse me, young lady, but its late and nearly your bedtime. If Link decides to stay, you can play tomorrow. Now go upstairs and change."

"But sis, I—"

Cremia gave her little sister a warning look and put her hand in the air. "No arguing."

Romani sighed loudly, turned to Link, and said, "Well, nevermind. Night, Grasshopper."

With that, she slowly stomped upstairs, making sure her footsteps could be heard from even outside.

Cremia rolled her eyes before asking Link, "Will the same bed as the night before work?"

"Yes, and thank you," he replied.

"My pleasure." She slipped off her shoes at the door before snuffing out the light on the table. "Goodnight."

Soon after the ranch owner had changed out of her work clothes and plopped onto her bed, and overwhelming wave of tiredness spread over her entire body. The constant mixed feelings of stress and relief had worn her mind to exhaustion.

Though, before she drifted into a land of dreams, Cremia could not help but think about Link. The boy had displayed the qualities of a man tonight. He was nothing like Romani.

"_Who is this boy_…" she questioned to herself. He would grow up to be a very fine young man, she just knew it. After what he did tonight, Link did not ask for payment in any way, nor boast. He showed exemplary virtues, protecting her and accompanying her on the way back at his own inconvenience.

These thoughts rang a bell in Cremia's mind. She had known somebody like this before. Someone who would willingly put himself in harm's way to protect her from suffering. Someone who would do noble deeds and not give any notice to his valiance.

Someone who was named Kafei.

However, unlike previous times, Cremia did not feel the pain of loss dwell within her as she had previously experienced. Smiling drowsily, she shifted onto her side and closed her eyes.

The notes of an ocarina were played in a tune, heard by nobody except the player, whose presence soon after was not within Romani Ranch.


	5. Day Three

**NOTE: I'm not a fan of "hurt" stories, but it was necessary for this chapter. I feel like this was the chapter I wrote the best, but please give critique as always.**

As the sun grazed the roof of the ranch house, the owner leapt out of bed, almost wide awake. Cremia had gone to bed earlier than usual the previous night, having been exhausted from the eventful day.

Stretching and yawning at the same time, she arose and peered at the clock through the dim room, which read six thirty. "_Well, oversleeping this morning isn't too bad… I'll just wake Romani after my bath._ _I wonder what the weather is outside_."

Though, at that moment, she did not find out what the state of the weather was outside. The window was covered by a large, dark object. Cremia leaned forward and squinted her eyes before walking downstairs and towards the door, still in her nightgown.

"_What in Termina could possibly be blocking our wind—_"

However, her ramblings were interrupted by the answer laid before her very eyes. Cremia gasped and put a hand to her mouth.

The moon, facing towards the direction of Clock Town, was enormous. Though, in reality, the moon was this almost scale last night, she didn't bother to notice it due to the commotion.

Her insides were on fire. The joy of the night before instantly evaporated.

Does this really mean what she can only hope it doesn't?

"_I.. I need a bath… to get my mind off things.._"

But, as she stepped into the normally soothing waters, her nerves did not ease. How could she forget about this? How could she forget about the looming moon that could potentially end her existence?

After drying off and changing, Cremia walked shakily over to her sister's bed, but did not find her there.

"Romani?"

"Down here, sis!"

The young woman walked down to see the table already set and ready with breakfast. Her little sister sat in the small chair smiling up at her.

"Romani made breakfast for you. Doesn't it look good?" She smiled, rising from her chair and bowing.

"Oh my… Thank you, sweetie. It looks great." The eggs looked a bit undercooked, but Cremia didn't care in the slightest. With the current ordeal, she couldn't be happier with her sister.

Though, in the middle of breakfast, there was a loud rapping on the door. Cremia made to go open it.

"Anju?"

For, standing in front of her, was Anju, accompanied by her mother and her grandmother. Anju smiled at Cremia, but was definitely worse for wear.

"Um… Come in."

As they walked inside the house, Romani noticed Anju and leapt up immediately.

"Hi, Anju! Romani made breakfast for sister! Isn't it nice?"

"Yes, Romani, it is," Anju replied. Her eyes were very droopy and puffy. Clearly she had been crying lately.

Cremia instantly walked over to Anju's mother and whispered, "_Do you mind?_" and signaled her head towards Romani. She nodded, and Cremia grabbed Anju's arm and lead her upstairs.

Anju, as soon as they entered the room, crumbled onto Cremia's bed and put her head in her knees.

"Oh, Cremia… You know, Kafei's gone missing since a few days ago and… he promised we would meet but I can't find him anywhere! And with the moon about to crash into Clock Town…"

"_So it's actually true,_" Cremi thought mournfully.

"…I can't bear it! Clock Town isn't safe anymore, so I went the first place I could think of, and here we are… Would you mind letting us stay?"

"Of course, Anju… I'm sorry to hear about Kafei…" Cremia was upset with herself for not being able to say anything to comfort Anju. She wasn't very experienced with relationships, and one on this scale was out of her league.

"Thank you Cremia…" Anju whispered, putting her face in her hands again. Cremia sat down and put an arm around her for a few minutes, but soon exited the room. She would need some alone time with her family.

Cremia walked back downstairs and outside to release the cows from their pin. Throughout the rest of the day, Cremia tended to the cows, trying to keep her mind off of Termina's terrible fate. The moon slowly but steadily moved towards the earth at speeds that seemed much faster than the previous days.

While she was grooming one cow towards the edge of the ranch, she heard footsteps behind her. Slowly turning around, she blinked at a young boy in green clothing.

"Hello, Link… I heard this from the people fleeing this way this morning… It's terrible… They said that huge moon is going to crash down onto the town sometime tonight. I wonder if we'll be all right here…" As she said these words, they sounded fake… They sounded like blank words only to comfort where there was none.

Link didn't meet her in the eyes, but stared grimly into the distance. Perhaps he knew what would happen tonight.

He looked at Cremia for a minute before turning away and walking out of the ranch. Cremia returned to grooming the last cow. After this was done, she herded them back into the barn, followed by Romani. Time seemed to fly as Cremia had absentmindedly groomed the cows. Night had fallen upon them.

Cremia gazed at her younger sister and an overwhelming sense of love enveloped her. The little girl was constantly in her presence, and she took her for granted. The moon falling emphasized how much she cared for this girl. Romani was absolutely clueless about the terror above, and Cremia hoped it could only stay that way for the rest of her life.

With the moon falling, she wanted to make Romani's last hours as enjoyable as possible.

"Romani, today I'm going to give you a special treat that you wouldn't normally give to you. Have you ever wondered what Chateau Romani tastes like?"

"Totally! But why would you… wait…" comprehension dawned onto her face, which turned into a very big, toothy smile.

"No way! Can Romani drink some?"

"Well, that was what I was getting at," Cremia smiled at her sister. "But you have to help me milk it from the cows before you have some, okay?"

"Yes, sis!" she exclaimed, immediately standing beside her sister.

They were working on milking the precious milk from the cows when the door suddenly opened. Link made his second appearance at Romani Ranch today.

Romani turned to him and said, "We're milking the cows tonight! It's 'Chateau Romani.'" She smiled with pride. "It's the first time I get to drink it! Until now, my sister always said, 'Wait until you're an adult.' But why now?" she asked curiously, looking at her sister.

There was a moments silence after this question. Cremia bit her lip before lying, "You've become an adult now, Romani… I see it in you. I'm acknowledging it."

"Then, does Romani get a mask, too?" her little sister asked with a frown on her face.

"Well, yes, I'll make one for you…" Cremia looked into her sister's eyes and held back tears. "_I can't show any signs of weakness… Not now… For her…_"

"Sleep with me in my bed tonight, okay, Romani?" she added in, smiling.

"Yes, sister." Romani replied grinning.

It was a moment before Cremia realized that Link was gone. Where was he going? What would he do with the moon falling?

Once the cows were finished being milked, Cremia filled a small bottle with the prized Chateau Romani and handed it to her sister.

"Wwwwoooaahh…" Romani whispered in awe. Cremia chuckled slightly.

"Well? Go on then, drink up!"

Romani looked at her sister before suddenly put the jar to her lips. She closed her eyes and downed the beverage.

Afterwards, she burped very loudly and looked at herself as if expecting to suddenly change.

"Cool! Romani is an adult now!"

"Yes… yes you are." Cremia said, still gazing down at her. "Now, it's getting dark, let's head into the house."

After leading Romani back into the house, Cremia noticed that Anju and her family were sitting at the dinner table. Cremia released her hands from the back of Romani's shoulders and walked over to Anju.

Very sudennly, Anju got up, ran to Cremia, and embraced her very tightly. Cremia returned it, closing her eyes tightly.

"I'll miss you, Cremia…" Anju whispered in her ear.

"You too, Anju… you too."

Releasing from their embrace, Cremia looked around to see Anju's senile grandmother staring at the ceiling.

"Um, Romani, go upstairs, it's almost your bedtime. Go and get changed."

"Yes, sis."

After Romani had skipped happily upstairs, Cremia turned to Anju's mother. Both she and Anju's faces were tear stricken.

"I've been a little harsh on Anju. But it's fine this way. Right now, surviving is the important thing."

Though these were empty words to Cremia, and perhaps to the speaker as well.

The young woman knew that they weren't safe here. She wasn't an expert on these things, but that's the feeling she got.

Cremia mournfully bade goodnight to the family. Anju was muttering to herself remorsefully was the last thing she heard from the room.

She walked upstairs to see Romani already changed and in Cremia's bed. After changing herself, Cremia ordered her sister, "Hey, I sleep on that side. Scooch over."

Afterwards, she slipped into bed and next to Romani, who yawned loudly and stretched her arms.

"I'm tired… goodnight sis," she muttered, rolling over onto her side and closing her eyes.

"Goodnight, Romani," she whispered.

And as the moon rumbled like an earthquake outside, the cold truth finally hit Cremia deep in her heart, as straightforward and undeniable as it had ever been. She could not stop warm tears rolling down her cheeks as she turned away from Romani. There was no escaping the terrible fate that the moon had in store for them.

Cremia could only grieve that Romani's life would be cut short in such a foul manner. She would be missing out on so much. Romani would have grown up to be a fine young woman, and Cremia would never forgive herself for not seeing that through.

But that's how life goes. There are some things in life that you can't change no matter how hard you try…

Closing her eyes tightly, pinching the last of the tears out, Cremia said to Romani for what she knew was the last time...

"Sweet dreams."


	6. Dawn of a New Day (Part 1)

**NOTE: Sorry for the shorter chapter, but I plan to put this part and the next part (which will be longer) in two separate chapters or else it'll be too long. This might be a bit poorly written, but it's the best I could really think of at this time of the night. Hope you still enjoy it. Also, this is where the more fanfic part starts, since the previous chapters were about what happened in game.**

**P.S. I also changed the chapter title and description to fit more with what I was going for.**

Cremia felt her hand asleep as she woke up. Extremely groggy, she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

Was she dead? Is this the afterlife? But… she was still in her house. Does each person go to an afterlife similar to their previous lives?

All these questions swam in Cremia's mind and it made her even more tired. As she swung her legs towards the bedside to get up, however, her feet collided with something soft, which fell onto the floor.

"OW!" she heard a little girl say.

"Wha… who is that?" Cremia murmured, disoriented, trying to see through the overwhelming darkness, but in vain.

"It's me, sis! And why'd you kick me?" the girl replied back with a moody tone.

"Me who?"

"Romani! Your younger sister! Are you okay?"

The name Romani pierced Cremia's mind, traveling through her chest and straight into her mind, where it clicked.

"Romani? Wait, really?!"

"Yeah! Why do you sound so surprised?" her little sister said exasperatedly.

But Cremia was barely listening. She, still in her nightgown, sprinted down the stairs, almost tripping, towards the door.

As she opened it, she looked at a beautiful, clear sky.

Clear sky… Something was missing. Something big that was there before.

"_It's gone_."

Cremia squealed and slapped the biggest smile in her entire life onto her face. She ran back upstairs and found her puzzled little sister standing at the door impatiently.

"What's gotten into you? Why are you—WAH!"

The young woman had lifted her sister off her feet and into a rib crushing hug.

"Oh my! Romani!" Cremia couldn't control her own dignity at the overwhelming joy that overcame her.

"Well, looks like someone's found out the good news."

Cremia turned her head to see Anju's mother walking towards her, smiling. She released Romani from her arms and smiled sheepishly.

Romani took a brief moment to gasp for air before asking, "What good news?"

"Um.. Romani, go upstairs and get changed."

"But sii-iis!" the little girl complained.

"Hey, now, I'll tell you sometime later. Please, do as I say."

Romani sighed before trudging upstairs.

Cremia turned back towards Anju's mother, who immediately started explaining.

"Well, naturally, I couldn't sleep, so I sat looking out the window for most of the night. Just as the moon was about to finish everybody off, however, four massive giants came from the four regions of Termina and stopped the moon themselves. It was an unbelievable spectacle to behold." She paused for a moment, before continuing, "Anyway, The moon, after a long standstill of being _this _close," Anju's mother put her two hands together, "to Clock Town, suddenly was engulfed in a rainbow-ish color. And it disappeared. Bizzare, isn't it? But Termina was miraculously saved, and that's all that matters."

Cremia absorbed this in as she heard her footsteps of Romani upstairs. Giants? Moon disappearing in rainbows? This made no sense, but she didn't care. They were alive. They were safe.

"Well," she heard the older woman say, "Anju has left for Clock Town, and I should probably follow her there. It's nice that we survived this encounter. Be seeing you." And with that, the two women exchanged a hug before the elder walked out of the door.

Cremia quickly walked out of the ranch house to the barn. The air had never smelled so good before. She had never fully appreciated the beauty of the sunrise over Termina. As she let out the cows, Romani came out of the house dressed in work attire.

"You know what? Romani isn't even going to ask. You're nuts." she grumbled, but Cremia could tell she really didn't mean it.

"Yes, yes I am, little sister." Cremia grinned back at her. "So, Romani. Remember the promise I made to you about milk delivery?"

"Mhm."

"Well, with all the milk that we got from the cows last night, we need to deliver some of it to Mr. Barten in Clock Town. Would you like to come?"

"Totally! Are we going now?"

"Well, better now than never, am I right?" Cremia giggled.

After loading the carriage with several bottles of milk, Cremia and Romani made off to Clock town at a leisure pace.

The young woman took in her surroundings and sighed in relief. There was no moon in the sky. Nothing to threaten them. Nothing to separate the fine strand of human life from them. Cremia felt like a little girl again. She had absolutely no worries at this moment.

"It's a great day today, isn't it, Romani?" Cremia said. "Perfect weather, no clouds. Perfect."

Romani simply nodded at this and continued to bounce in her seat. Cremia giggled.

Fortunately, as they pulled out of the ranch, there was no gate blocking Milk Road to Clock Town. The direct path took only but a few minutes.

Outside the southern entrance, the sisters hopped off of the carriage and loaded the milk bottles into their arms.

As they entered the city, however, Clock Town was much different this time around.


	7. Dawn of a New Day (Part 2)

**NOTE: T****he game shows Link leaving Termina after Majora is defeated, but, to keep this an actual fanfic, I obviously had him stick around. Also, I'm noticing as I write that Cremia sounds a bit bossy towards Romani at certain points. I'll be fixing that later on, but I have reasons for it.**

South Clock Town was packed with the citizens within the carnival. Nearly every person sported a mask with no two being the same.

"Wooooaaahh!" Romani marveled. Cremia rolled her eyes.

"Romani, welcome to the Carnival of Time."

"This is so awesome!" she beamed at her surroundings. There were stands of food, different games to play, and a generally warm and exciting atmosphere.

As they walked through the town, they could both hear vendors shouting at the passers, trying to get their product some attention. One particular merchant tried to fit Romani into a frightening looking mask with large feathers and very disturbing features. Her little sister giggled playfully at it since she could only see the inside, but Cremia pulled it off and quickly guided Romani towards the Milk Bar, Latte.

"Surprise!" Cremia yelled as she walked into the bar. A band of Zoras were singing on stage while quite a few people watched them. Mr. Barten looked up at her with a puzzled look.

"Miss Cremia! I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting a delivery of milk for another few days. I'll take that off of you." he said, grabbing the milk jars and setting them on the shelf.

"I wasn't either!" Cremia smiled at him. "But we milked the cows last night as much as possible and we couldn't help but deliver some." She leaned forward an whispered in his ear, "In light of the recent events, this load is half off." She nudged her head towards Romani and put a finger to her lips.

"Oh, no, I couldn't ask of that from you!"

"I insist. With that moon gone and the carnival around, a few extra Rupees is the least of my concerns."

After a brief moment, he slipped the Rupees into Cremia's hand.

"Well, thank you very much, then! Care to stay for a drink?" he offered.

"That would be great, but unfortunately we need to be on our way."

"BARTENDER! More Chateau!" a shabby looking man barked.

"You know," Mr. Barten said through gritted teeth to Cremia, "the carnival sometimes brings the worst people around. But business is business. Be seeing you two."

However, instead of the bustling crowds and tumultuous chaos meeting them as they walked outside, there was nearly complete silence.

"Odd.." Cremia muttered to herself. Why is everybody so silent? Even on an average day in Clock Town it isn't this dead.

"Romani, stick close to me, okay?" she said suspiciously.

"Yes, sister."

Cremia and Romani walked together towards South Clock Town. As they entered, however, barely anything had visually changed. The grounds were still littered with the feet of the carnival goers. However, they were all facing towards the platform on the clock tower.

Suddenly, everybody shouted and cheered so loudly that Cremia screamed and Romani jumped a few inches off of the ground.

"I present to you, the hero of Termina!" a gruffy voice shouted after the cheers died down a bit. More cries of joy ensued.

"_Hero of Termina?_" Cremia wondered as she couldn't get a look to see who that particularly was.

"Romani, I'm going to go inch through the crowd to get a better look. Go back to Latte and sit with Mr. Barten for just a few minutes."

"But sis! I want to see too!"

"Romani!" Cremia gave her sister the look she always gave her when she argued.

"Ugh… How long will you be?"

"I shouldn't be too long, don't worry."

"Oookay…" Romani pouted. Cremia watched her strut back to the bar and enter it.

Cremia tried to work her way through the crowd, but with extreme difficulty. She actually stepped on a very large carpenter's foot.

"Ey, watch it, lady!" he boomed at her.

"Sorry!" she said in a small voice before hastily moving away from him.

At last, when she got into viewing position of the platform, she couldn't believe her eyes.

A short, blonde boy in green clothing was up on the platform with his hand being shaken by a man in armor. Link looked slightly uncomfortable while having hundreds of eyes on him.

"_Did I miss something? Surely he couldn't have…_"

"You wouldn't believe it, right?" the man in armor roared. "This boy is living proof that strength doesn't necessarily come with size. After the giants came and stopped the moon, it suddenly powered up and the giants looked like they couldn't handle it. However, this boy somehow was sucked up into the moon itself. After hours of nothing coming out, we were sure he was a goner, but hold your horses! The moon suddenly disappeared in a flash of rainbow lights, and the boy floated back towards the surface. I saw this with my own two eyes!"

Cremia's jaw dropped. There's no way… There's no way this boy she had met only a couple days ago is the reason for their very existence…

"We don't know how it happened," the man continued, "but this boy seems to have done something to stop the moon, for he went inside of it and came out alive while the moon was destroyed! Single handedly or not, this young warrior saved Termina from utter destruction! Tell me, lad, what is your name?!"

After a moment's pause, Link muttered his name.

"Well, Link, in light of your recent actions, the council has unanimously decided upon something. As captain of the guard squadron, it is my honor to present to you the Mask of Honor!"

Emerging from behind the tower, a person wearing a very vivid mask—male or female Cremia couldn't tell—walked gracefully carrying a red cushion with a golden mask gleaming on it. The character presented the mask to Link, who looked at it with mild curiosity before giving the same nod she had seen countless times before.

"Is there anything you would like to say, my boy?" the captain announced.

Link, however, true to his character, shook his head. The crowd, regardless, cheered him on as the guard guided him off of the platform and into East Clock Town.

Cremia, meanwhile, was looking dumbfounded at the platform still. Though she had an odd feeling in her. She was surprised at first, but when she snapped back into her senses as she nudged back towards the bar, she couldn't help but feel proud and admirable of Link. The young man had given her a reason to believe he was much older on the inside than he looked. She had already sort of thought that way after he had saved her milk from the bandits, but after what she had just heard, Link seemed more of an adult than she was.

Smiling slightly, she walked back towards the bar to meet with Romani.

However, as she was midway through the street towards the bar, she saw Link walking by himself down the staircase. Her heart leapt as she called his name.

"LINK!"

Cremia ran over to him, beaming. Link smiled sheepishly back at her.

"I mean, I knew you could take on a couple of robbers, but taking on an entire moon? That's amazing!"

"Don't mention it, I didn't expect this praise..." he replied humbly.

"Are you kidding?" Cremia asked incredulously. "You deserve it, and much more than a silly mask as well! Come on over to the bar, Romani's there too. We can talk about it."

"That actually sounds good. I had to do a bit of talk to escape that guard and I definitely don't want to have to talk to a load of tourists about it," he frowned.

As Cremia led him towards Latte, she said in a soft voice, "You might not want to mention your _heroic deeds_," (Link's face went slightly red at this), "to Romani. She doesn't particularly know about the crisis of the moon, and I don't think she really should. She doesn't have to worry about something like that."

Link chuckled slightly. Link opened the door for her and, after he entered, a girl's voice suddenly shouted,

"Grasshopper!"


	8. Dawn of a New Day (Part 3)

**NOTE: Sorry if this chapter is a bit boring, but you probably guessed that it was necessary to develop my path for the story. Also, I know Link does have a true home back in Kokiri Forest, but I decided that, since Saria was gone, maybe he didn't find the place as welcoming as before. IDK, deal with it, haha. As always, I hope you enjoy.**

Romani leapt from her seat next to Mr. Barten and came flying towards them.

"Romani. Hi." Linked grinned at her.

"So, where've you been? I didn't see you last night!"

"Err… I've been busy," he replied uncomfortably, looking at the ground.

"With what?"

"Uh… Stuff."

Romani gave him a perplexed look, but shook her head before glowing again.

"Well, forget that. Have you decided about the idea I gave you?" Romani gave him an oddly serious look considering the situation.

"Idea?" Cremia asked.

"Yeah, I asked Grasshopper if he could live at the ranch with us. To protect the cows, you know."

It took a moment or two for these words to sink into Cremia's mind.

She paused, before stating, "Missy, if anything like that were to happen, I would be the one to decide it."

"But Grasshopper might do it! Will you?"

Both of the girls looked at Link, who shifted awkwardly.

"Erm… I don't know what to say. It would be cool since I really don't have a true home, but I wouldn't dare impose anything like that on you guys."

Cremia looked into Link's eyes and was surprised to see that there was a hint of sadness in both his voice and his expression. She felt that there was more to it than that.

She quite liked this boy, and evidently Romani does too. He has done a lot in the past, and best of all, has asked nothing in return. Where would he sleep, though? They did have the spare blankets, but to sleep on the floor every night for who knows how long… It would also definitely require more work on Cremia's part, preparing an extra meal every day.

"_But he could help me with the cows._" Cremia realized. Now that she thought about it, this wasn't sounding too bad at all. Managing the ranch was hard work and, with Romani usually playing around, most of the labor was done by Cremia.

And the most convincing factor fell into her thoughts. This boy just supposedly saved their behinds from utter destruction.

"No, no, no, it's fine, don't worry! Right, Cremia?" Romani gave her a pleading look.

Cremia bit her lip before making up her mind. "Well, if you promise to help me with work around the ranch, unlike _someone_," she gave Romani a glare, "then yes, you can stay with us."

Both Romani and Link's faces lit up at this.

"Thank you, and I'm sorry for making you do this," Link said astonished. Clearly he didn't expect such a straightforward answer.

Romani squealed loudly, before her cheeks went red. Half of the bar was staring at her.

"So uh… yeah. That's awesome! Romani has an assistant now!"

Cremia giggled. Though she enjoyed work, it was difficult. Also, the extra company would be more than welcome. Cremia loved Romani with all of her heart, yes, but sometimes she did crave the company of others.

"All right, settle down. Now that our business here is finished, let's head back to the ranch, shall we?" Cremia suggested.

Romani, however, was not pleased.

"But sis, we have something at the bar?"

Cremia opened her mouth to say, "No, you're not old enough, remember?" but closed it quickly after remembering what she had said the previous night.

"Romani, Chateau is really expensive, and—"

"On me."

The statement came from Link.

"Oh, please, I couldn't possible ask of you to—"

She was interrupted again, but not by words, for Link had just pulled three golden rupees out of his pouch. He immediately walked over to the bar, where soon after Mr. Barten said, "Don't worry my boy, half off on all drinks today!"

Link nodded in thanks and slipped his two golden rupees back in his pouch and pulled out a silver one, totaling the cost to 300 rupees.

Meanwhile, Cremia had her hand over her mouth. How does this boy have so much money?

"Link, how in the… You didn't spend all of your rupees on us, did you?"

"Well… not really. But don't worry, just enjoy the drink, Cremia." Link smiled and handed her a Chateau Romani, soon after handing Romani one. She guessed he didn't want to talk about his money, either.

Cremia obeyed and sipped a bit of the beverage, but couldn't help but be reminded how mysterious this boy was. He seems to have much more cash than he lets on.

"Well, Link, thank you very much for the drink. Since we're leaving, we can slip out of East Clock Town and go down to the carriage." She gave him a meaningful look, and he understood. Walking through South Clock Town after what had happened earlier would break hell loose.

As they exited the Latte for the last time that day, The trio could hear the loud noises of celebration coming not too far from there.

"Sis, can we go to the carnival for a bit?" she asked, pointing towards the source of the uproar.

"No, sorry, sweetie. We have to get home, especially before carriage traffic picks up. Did you forget?" she added in after Romani made a face. "You'll get to play with Link!"

Romani brightened up after that remark. Clearly she did forget. Cremia roled her eyes, and they made their way out of Clock Town and towards the carriage on the southern border of the area.

They climbed up the steps to the carriage, and Cremia urged the donkey forward.

As they were just leaving, Cremia noticed that Link looked uncomfortable again.

"Something wrong?" she asked, frowning as they made their way across Termina Field.

"I just feel bad for doing this… You don't have to—"

"Oh, hush, you." she interrupted playfully. "Your _cute little face," _ruffling his hair, "will be a help around the ranch, don't you worry."

Link's complexion, worse than ever before, turned into a tomato. Romani and Cremia exchanged looks as they giggled loudly all the way down Milk Road.


	9. One Week Later

**_NOTE: Sorry this took longer than usual, midterms are in a week and there's a lot to study for. And this is kind of a filler for what's to come, sorry about that, but it's kind of necessary so the story doesn't take an abrupt turn. Hope you enjoy, as always. Also, I'm not exactly sure where this story might go after this. I know a general idea of what to do, but I don't know if I want to make this an adventure-esque story or not. I'm leaning towards not doing that, but who knows, it could develop the LinkxCremia relationship a bit more. I don't want to rush it, so there will probably be more than just a few chapters. We'll see._**

_Crash_.

"Hey, you two be careful down there!"

Cremia sighed as she made her way down the steps of her house. Hopefully they didn't break anything.

Link had moved in a week prior, and life had been going pretty well since. He has been quite a relief around the farm work-wise, constantly offering to assist Cremia and keep Romani occupied and happy. However, when they goofed around, they had a tendency to be a bit reckless.

When peeked into the living room, however, neither Romani or Link were in the house.

"Guys?"

No sooner had she called out when she heard what sounded like an earthquake coming from the outside. She ran to the door to see what the commotion was and swung it open.

What laid before her eyes froze her on the spot.

Dozens, no, hundreds of Wolfos were stampeding towards their ranch. What's worse, Romani is standing straight in the middle of the field, minding her own business.

"ROMANI! WATCH OUT!" Cremia gasped. How could her little sister not hear the stampede on the ranch?

"Wha?" Romani replied lazily. She turned around and finally saw the terror coming from the entrance. As she screamed, the Wolfos caught up to her and surrounded the little girl, blocking her from view.

Cremia's blood turned to ice. She tried to scream, but no sound came out. She could only watch helplessly as the Wolfos ravaged her sister. Tears were rolling down her eyes as she attempted to run to the mob, but her feet were rooted to the ground.

"_Cremia…_"

The screaming became more defined, now, sounding more real by the second.

"_Cremia!_"

She could hear footsteps and her vision being swayed, a falling sensation hit her stomach…

"CREMIA!"

The ranch woman woke with a start, and she found herself with her face in her hands and her hair drenched with sweat. Her breathing was rapid, heart pounding, and there was an odd ringing in her ears.

Cremia, disoriented, grabbed for the candle on her bedside and put it in front of her to see Link and Romani staring at her with bewildered faces. The young boy had drawn his sword.

"Are you alright? What happened?" he urged her.

"What do you mean?" she asked, slightly relieved as she stared at the two. It was just a nightmare.

"I heard a loud noise coming from your side of the room and I came over to see you screaming with your hands on your head!" Romani replied, concerned.

"I heard it too, and I came up as quick as possible! Were you attacked?"

"I had a bad dream… A very bad one, yes… But I'm fine. Nobody attacked me." Cremia muttered, lying in a heap back down on her pillow.

Link took a deep intake of breath before sheathing his sword.

"Well, I'm glad to hear you're okay. I thought something horrible had happened," he smiled in relief.

The three sat in silence before Romani sighed, "Alright, Romani is going back to bed… 'Night again, sis."

Her little sister walked back over to her bed, which creaked as she laid back down on it.

Link turned back towards Cremia and asked, "Do you want me to stand outside the door?"

"Oh, no, Link, you need to sleep," she replied, sitting up straight again.

"Don't worry, I've had enough sleepless nights before. I'm used to it," he reassured.

"I'm sorry, but I can't allow you to stay up for half the night just because I had a bad dream. Don't worry, I'm alright."

"You sure?" said Link.

"Positive," she said. "Now, get some sleep."

Link reluctantly nodded and turned to the door.

As he was about to leave Cremia beckoned, "Wait!"

Link turned towards her.

"Thank you. For worrying, I mean," she whispered, blushing slightly. She was glad it was dark and her expression was concealed.

The young boy signaled, understanding, and closed the door behind himself. However, Cremia did not hear the groan of the stairs when somebody walked down them.

Cremia lied back down and smiled. She could hear her sister's loud breathing, which indicated she had already fallen back asleep. Are little girls usually heavy sleepers like that?

But the word, "sleep," triggered something in her brain. The feeling overwhelmed her, and she was fast asleep as soon as she had closed her eyes.

The next morning, Cremia woke to the birds chirping outside just at the crack of dawn. She did the normal routine of combing her hair and changing her clothing before making her way towards the door. When she opened the door, however, it collided mid-way with something rather solid.

The obstructer groaned before moving slightly out of the way. This allowed enough space between the door and the wall for Cremia to squeeze her way out.

As she looked down, she saw Link curled up at the doorstep. Cremia laughed as her suspicions were confirmed that he had not returned downstairs after the events last night. She bent down and nudged him slightly with her hand.

"Liiiink. Why are you sleeping up here?" she chided playfully.

"Whayumean?" he sputtered. Realizing who he was talking to, his eyes immediately widened and he got up hastily. "Uhhh, I… well…"

"Forget it, silly. Would you do me a favor and wake Romani up for breakfast?"

"Yeah, sure," he said, looking relieved for an excuse to not answer her question.

As Cremia prepared breakfast (scrambled eggs, ham from a vendor in town and, of course, milk), Link came down the steps followed shortly by Romani. The little girl sat down in her small chair and Link took a seat in the chair he had bought for himself in Clock Town.

After eating breakfast with Romani talking animatedly about how many targets she had hit in one minute, the three of them walked outside into the brisk morning air.

Rather than doing work, however, they took a day's break to relax and enjoy themselves. Cremia and Link had already milked the cows quite a bit in the past few days, so they had already filled up most of the bottles with either normal milk or Chateau. Cremia made a mental note to make a delivery tomorrow. The other two could come along too, if they want. Grog has been more cheerful lately since the moon didn't destroy him or his chickens, so maybe he'll be up for watching the cows for a couple hours or so.

Cremia tossed fodder into the cow's troughs and walked outside to see Link being tested on horseback by Romani again. Like before, he was, with his arrows, popping the balloons spread out around the ranch. She smiled as she watched the two play around throughout the morning. Occasionally, Cremia walked around the ranch to have small discussions with Grog and Mamamu Yan, and soon enough she found it to be lunchtime.

Heading out of the dog racing track, she walked briskly towards the ranch house. However, she saw Link and Romani facing each other from a distance. As she strolled towards them, however, she noticed that Link was pointing his bow at Romani, who had an apple on her head.

Comprehension trickled into her mind in the split second she stared at the scene.

"No—" she began, but too late. Link's arrow had already taken flight. Cremia braced herself for the worst, but she did not hear any cries of pain, but rather, giggling. The arrow had gone square through the apple and hit the floor with a small thud.

"You know, can you guys do things that _don't _give me a heart attack?" she gasped. The pair laughed and exchanged high fives before walking inside for their second meal.

The hours passed by with Cremia enjoying the company of her sister and friend. As day shifted to night, they finally wrapped up their final activities and walked inside to prepare for slumber.

After Cremia changed into her nightgown, she walked back into the living room to bid Link a good night's sleep. However, as she walked down the first few steps, she noticed Link rummaging through his bag. He pulled out a strange assortment of things such as various masks and other devices she couldn't even begin to describe.

She opened her mouth to ask him what those things were, but closed it right after. Cremia didn't really mind what he carried with him, and she felt it wasn't really her business, anyway. Men can be strange, sometimes, with what interests them.

"Link?" she called, trying to act as if she had just walked into the room.

Link jumped slightly at his name, quickly put his items back into his bag, and looked at her.

"Yes, Cremia?"

"Just saying goodnight. I have to go to town to deliver all the milk we've gotten lately. Would you like to come? Romani will come as well."

"Sure, I've been meaning to stop by town recently as well."

"Then it's settled. We'll leave around ten o'clock in the morning tomorrow," she smiled. "Good night."

"Night, Cremia," he responded, smiling slightly and heading over to his sleeping bag near the fire.

And Cremia, as she walked back into her room, realized she was more relaxed and carefree than she had been in years. Less work, more company, and no moon to worry about has definitely raised her spirits. She looked over at her sister, who looked quite comfortable snuggled under her covers.

"Romani?" she asked. "I'm going to town tomorrow, and Link's coming as well. Want to come?"

Romani's face lit up as it always did when she heard good news. "Would I!" she said, sitting up and beaming. Cremia chuckled. She would never get over at how enthusiastic her little sister was about simple trips to town.

"Alright, then. Get some sleep."

"Yes, sis," Romani replied, lying back down and closing her eyes.

Cremia sought the warmth of her own blankets and soon after sidled into them. Snuffing out the candle, she fell into a peaceful sleep, uninterrupted by crazy moons or sinister nightmares.


End file.
